Its extraordinary structure is what makes this site so special. Divers can inspect the wheelhouse at 40 feet down. The deck can be found at 66ft below the surface. There are also accesses to the cargo holdings. The ship's head, or toilet, is found outside the wreck on the sand. There is also a smiling skull. A lot of sea life visits the Warsaw Reef nearby.
The SS Tarpon is a historical shipwreck. In 1937, she sank and claimed the lives of 18 crewmembers, including Willis G. Barrow (captain). Adley Baker, one of the crew members, was able to swim 9 miles in gale-force wind to reach shore. It was a 25-hour marathon, but Adley Baker lived to tell it all.
The structure of this site makes it extraordinary. At 40' down, divers can investigate the wheelhouse. The deck is at 66' down with entrances into the cargo holds. The ship’s head (toilet) sits outside the wreck on the sand replete with a jovial skull. There’s also plenty of sea life coming to visit from the nearby Warsaw Reef.
Our threshold for offshore diving extends more than 8 mi from St Andrew's Pass. These sites require advanced certification. It is a good idea to get a nitrox cert. These trips don't run every single day because of their distance. For information on when the next trip will run, contact the dive shop.
You can download our free dive resources and other useful information to help you feel more comfortable before you take your first plunge. Explore some of our favourite dive spots and learn more about historical landmarks only found underwater.
The jetties at St. Andrews State Park offer the best beach dives available along the Emerald Coast. Depth on the channel side of the west jetty hits 70 feet in spots, and the rocks attract and hold a variety of sea life, including octopus, red snapper, redfish, grouper, and other tropical fish. If you time your dive to catch an incoming tide, it doesn’t get any better.
The wave interval is more important than the absolute size of the waves in the area around Panama City Beach. The waves that create rollers are long interval waves, while the waves that cause rocking make the boat move up and down. Divers can be difficult to spot in the water because they are harder to see.
Never hold your breath
As every good entry-level dive student knows, this is the most important rule of scuba. And for good reason — breath holding underwater can result in serious injury and even death. In accordance with Boyle's law, the air in a diver's lungs expands during ascent and contracts during descent.
As you become a qualified scuba diver, you learn the basics of an essential scuba system. A cylinder, weights, an exposure suit, regulators, BCD gauge and timing device, mask and fins are the bare essentials.